A police agency is undergoing an effort to hire more diverse police officers due to the current police force largely being a homogeneous group of men.
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1.) Consider the following scenario: A police agency is undergoing an effort to hire more diverse police officers due to the current police force largely being a homogeneous group of men. These same group of men seem very resistant to the idea of diversity in the workplace. How might these men be encouraged to broaden their perspective concerning the potential value of diversity in a meaningful manner?
a. If a group of a homogenous police officers were reluctant to accept more diverse officers, I would have to point out just a few things. I would have to point out that different culture like to think in deferent ways. This is good for police officers as well as citizens. A police officer with a different background may have a different thought process which could help in so many situations. Another help would be with citizens feeling more comfortable with the officer handling their situation. By having someone with the same culture, things become more relatable and therefore easier to handle. Along with this comes a greater reach into the community. By being this relatable, the community will be more responsive and easy going. There are so many pluses to having a diverse team, if the individual him/her self is a good person as well.
b. Diversity in the police force can have a huge impact on crime, the community as well as in house operations. A police agency filled with men doesn’t allow for as broad of a spectrum of perspectives as a police agency filled with not just both genders but multiple races. By having police officers of all backgrounds, different situations can be handled in many ways. An example of this is in a Hispanic community, it is beneficial to have Hispanic police officers. By tending to the populated area, it makes it easier for the police to form bonds with the people as well as it being easier for the police to communicate in an effective way with the community. Another example of diversity in policing would be having woman on the workforce. Woman, often, can easier communicate with woman who have been raped because they have nurturing characteristics where as a male police officer might be able to better understand a female domestic violence victim due to the protective nature males possess towards women. To help encourage the introduction of diversity to the police agency it would be helpful to show benefits of diversity through the statistics of other outside agencies who have already created a diverse work environment.
2.) Having a diverse workforce is sometimes viewed as a panacea for social ills. But merely having a diverse workforce does not mean that social problems simply go away. What additional steps need to be taken to ensure a productive governmental workforce in the face of diversity in the workplace?
a. Since diversity is not the only solution to social problems, to make a more productive workplace it would be best to ensure everyone is treated the same. An equal voice is necessary to making a more productive workspace. This is because diversity itself is not enough, and this can be seen thought the history of the United states. Diversity could be seen everywhere throughout the public; however, the different races were not treated the same. If everyone were to have a voice, then problems would certainly diminish. It was Martin Luther King Jr. who also desired an equal voice and equality in general. With is measure taken, workforce productivity will most likely increase due to the reality that a person will have about the nature of their work. Equal pay and work would go a long way to increase work productivity as well. It would allow females to work and do the same jobs as a man while receiving the same pay as a man. For example, a woman should be allowed to join or try out for special operations in the military. This was something that the military tried to keep women out of for a long while until now. Therefore, not just diversity but equal pay and an equal voice contribute to increased work productivity and will benefit the governmental workforce.
b. In the work place diversity is not the only solution to social problems. In order to have a productive and efficient workplace equality is necessary. For a productive workplace to happen it is important that every voice is heard to allow for equality and make the employees feel important and heard. Having diversity in a workplace is needed but it is not the only solution, it is not enough and it does not matter if one race is getting special treatment over the other. If equality is not given having diversity would be irrelevant. Having equality can include equal pay, fair pay, benefits, fair treatment, and having a healthy work environment. These are all examples of what equality can be besides diversity. Equal pay would encourage more women to want to join this workforce which would then allow for more diversity.
3.) Should women receive lighter sentences because they are more likely to be the sole caretakers of young dependent children? Should the children of incarcerated women have special visitation rights?
a. I believe that just because women are more likely to be the sole caretakers of young dependent children, that doesn’t allow them to receive lighter sentences. A woman who is a sole provider for her children shouldn’t be out making choices that would jeopardize her children’s safety as well as her own. Although there are circumstances to take into consideration such as, the factors that drove the mother to commit the crime, it is still inexcusable for the mother to receive a lighter sentence. I do believe that children should have a special visitation right because it allows a healthy relationship between the mother and child. With the mass incarceration that our country has created, it has caused a huge epidemic of children with incarcerated parents. As mentioned in a previous discussion response, “In 2007, 1.7 million children had a parent in state or federal prison in the United States, an increase of 80% since 1991” (Glaze & Maruschak, 2008) With the growing statistic, parents and children should have more leniency and visitation rights. Incarcerated parents would not only be able to provide support to their children and build the relationship, but a proper visitation can create emotional benefits for both sides.
b. Over the years, there has been much discussion on the topic of whether woman should receive lighter sentences because they are more likely to be the sole caretakers of young dependent children. When looking at this, there has been studies that show woman are given shorter sentences than men. For example, the article shows how in 2014 a study showed that federal courts are more lenient on female defendants in general. They are less likely to incarcerate women and tend to give women shorter sentences than men. (Kelsh, C., 2017) I believe that woman should not receive lighter sentences to be caretakers of young dependent children since they knew what the consequences would be when they committed the crime, and this would be one of them. In my opinion if they wanted to be there for their children, then they should not have committed the actions they did to end up in prison. When looking at special visitation rights for children with their mothers, I believe that this would create much unfairness and inequality if this would happen. I do believe that children should have support of their parents especially their mothers, yet I do not think they should have special privilege over another woman that does not have a kid and wants to see her family. It would create much controversy and consequences that can occur inside prisons if woman who had children had special privileges.
4.) In what way does the job of corrections officer require more professionalism than it did 50 years ago? What can be done to help foster more professionalism within the ranks of corrections officers?
5.) How does a researcher conduct participant observation research? In the case of When Prophecy Fails (1956), what level of participation did the researchers use? What are some ethical problems that may arise with such research?
a. Participant observation research is research that is done in a variety of strategies. The researcher studies a group in its natural setting by watching their actions while at the same time participating with the group in its activities. It gives the researcher a better understand up close and personal with the group. They need to be able to study the group up close at all times, while the group does various activities. In the case of When Prophecy Fails it dealt with a group of researchers who joined a small doomsday cult. Their idea was to bring about certain behaviors in which they wanted to research. This research was a complete investigation, this type of research is when researchers join the group and begin to manipulate the groups decisions. There are multiple ethical problems that can arise with participant observation research, for example, the researcher must get inside the group while still being an outsider and be able to do research on the group. They must complete an investigation into the group without being noticed by the group. If the researchers are caught it could compromise the research study and ruin the overall data.
b. A researcher conducts participant observation research by observing the group they are studying in their natural environment. In such observations the researchers can also to an extent be involved in the group’s activities. However, in the case of When Prophecy Fails, the level of participation was what could be expected, until the researcher had to defend himself from an attack by an inmate. He then had the opportunity to move into more sensitive positions to further the research being conducted. There are many ethical problems that can arise as in the situation of When Prophecy Fails. First being the intentions and methods used by the researcher were not very ethical. The researcher knew the type of environment that was being studied, and of course in an attempt to observe the group in their environment, was placed in a dangerous situation. While it was ethical that the researcher went into the environment which can foster a more realistic observation, it also begs the question of how far is too far? Subjecting yourself to a possibly life-threatening situation while being undercover to do a research study is elicitation and impersonation in a sense and misleading those around. It becomes even more unethical when the researcher is attacked and has to defend himself. This gave him the opportunity to prove himself and obtain further access. This is very unethical based on the method used and if the person is identified in conducting themselves and their study in this manner, there is a chance that their research may be disregarded due to the nature and manner the study was done.
6.) Regarding objectivity, why must a researcher avoid both overidentification with a study group as well as aversion to it?
a. There are several reasons why a researcher must refrain from overidentification while also staying aversion to it. First and foremost is the focus of safety. For these researchers to really obtain, understand, and provide the information from their study they must be able to go in deep. Once an individual is deep in their study and the group, they can then begin to ask questions and begin to understand the reasoning behind methods and actions taken by such groups. While overidentification is a major factor and concern that cannot be overstated. When in these scenarios the researchers must hide themselves completely and put on an entire mask to the work they are doing and their own personal beliefs and biases. This is to help them stay objective and not necessarily biased or overly prejudice in their studies.Overidentification occurs when the researcher goes to far and begins to act with the group they are observing, and this can become dangerous especially depending on the group in which they are observing and the activities in which these groups are involved in. However, as stated with safety and hiding their personal values, a researcher must be capable of going completely immersed within their group of research. When undercover in order to obtain the information they need, they must be capable of blending in and not striking suspicion while also collecting and recording the information necessary. The textbook highlights the works of Malinowski’s work and what he was able to produce while not falling victim to overidentification or not following aversion as necessary.
